The losses were necessary – IMF backs BoG’s costly economic rescue

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has defended the Bank of Ghana (BoG) over its massive financial losses.

IMF Mission Chief Ruben Atoyan has stated that the costs were necessary to stabilise Ghana’s economy after years of severe macroeconomic distress.

Speaking on PM Express Business Edition on Thursday, he rejected suggestions that the central bank had acted too aggressively in tightening monetary policy.

“I would disagree with this view that the Bank of Ghana was too aggressive,” he said.

“I think it was very prudent, and the achievement is manifested in the outcomes.”

His comments follow the release of the Bank of Ghana’s 2025 audited financial statements, which showed the central bank recorded a GH¢15.6 billion loss for the year.

The figure represented a sharp increase from the GH¢9.49 billion loss recorded in 2024.

The accounts also showed that the central bank’s negative equity position worsened to GH¢93.82 billion from GH¢58.62 billion.

The losses were largely linked to the Bank’s aggressive liquidity management and sterilisation operations aimed at controlling inflation and restoring economic stability.

But Dr Atoyan said such costs were unavoidable under the circumstances Ghana faced.

“There is a cost of doing monetary policy, and this is something that people need to understand,” he explained.

According to him, the central bank’s financial statement openly reflected the burden associated with fighting inflation in a high-interest-rate environment.

“You know that the Bank of Ghana 2025 financial statement was just published, and it transparently presents the cost of doing business with high inflation and high interest rates,” he stated.

He explained that the central bank’s efforts to absorb excess liquidity from the financial system inevitably came at a financial cost.

“Absorbing liquidity from the market is costly, and that’s what we see as reflected in the statement,” he said.

Dr Atoyan maintained that although the operations weakened the Bank’s balance sheet in the short term, they were necessary to restore stability and confidence in the economy.

“Yes, so it did generate some costs for the Bank of Ghana, but it was a necessary cost for the stabilisation going forward,” he stressed.

The IMF Mission Chief also argued that the results of the policy measures were becoming evident in the broader economy.

“I think people on the ground actually recognise that,” he added.

The Bank of Ghana has in recent years pursued tight monetary policy measures, including high interest rates and liquidity absorption operations, as part of efforts to contain inflation, stabilise the cedi and restore macroeconomic confidence following Ghana’s economic crisis and debt restructuring programme.

المصدر: MyJoyOnline (GH)